Poisoned
by ElmoVsBibo
Summary: Tony has been poisoned and they receive the antidote only when they solve an old case. A race against time begins. Can Gibbs and his team save him in time? Contains Tibbs relationship
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys. This is going to my first long story. I hope you like it. I wish you much fun and I'm curious what you think.

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"Give me another beer, Joe." The bartender nodded and handed Anthony DiNozzo shortly his request.

It was only his second beer that night and still Tony knew he should not really drink. After all, he had to work tomorrow.

But Tony needed it this evening.

First, they had finally solved a hard case, which they had worked for a week around the clock.

The daughter of a highly decorated Marine was kidnapped. For three days there was no call, no sign, no claim.

On the fourth day, the kidnappers had finally called. They wanted $ 500 000, otherwise they would kill the girl.

God, she was only five years old.

The problem with the phone call was that the hijackers had redirected the signal so that Abby and McGee could not trace it in this short time.

Today they caught the guys at last. The money transfer should take place in an empty warehouse at the port. Tony and the rest of Gibbs' team had gone there to take cover.

When the guys finally arrived, everything went very quickly. The agents grabbed the kidnappers, put them in handcuffs and after a few questions and a few seconds under the famous Gibbs' glare, one of the kidnappers led the Agent's to their hiding place.

They could return the girl to her parents. Alive and healthy.

Tony was glad they could close this case. Successful.

After a hard case like this, DiNozzo really wanted only one thing. He wanted to lie down with his boss Leroy Jethro Gibbs, the man whom he loved more than anything in this world, and sleep through until the next morning.

But that would not happen tonight.

Tonight, Tony would sleep in his own small, empty and cold apartment.

And all because of a stupid and pointless dispute. The reason was so feeble that Tony could not even remember it anymore.

Tony wanted to be able to simply forget the dispute so that they could be reconciled. But he knew that this was not possible. They were both just too stubborn.

Instead, he now had a sleepless night ahead. Since the two had met five years ago, they had spent every night together. The only exceptions were if one of them was in hospital, or they had fought, as now.

And in each of these nights, Tony was not able to sleep.

The young man took the last swig from his beer, put the money on the counter and went on his way to his car.

He wondered briefly whether he should call a cab, but decided against it. After all, he only had two beers.

Ten minutes later he was on the highway. At this time was not much traffic, fortunately.

He could still go to Gibbs, and perhaps apologize ....

No. He knew exactly how Jethro was thinking about apologizing and besides, even if Tony didn't know anymore what the dispute was about, he still knew who had started it. And it was not him. So if anyone should apologize, it was Gibbs. But Tony knew this would never happen. But that was okay. This was Gibbs_; Never show a sign of weaknes_. Tony would be fine, if Jethro would just call and say, that he missed him, that his only wish for tonight was, that Tony would come over.  
Or something like that. Anything, it doesn't matter as long as Tony must not be allone tonight.

Tony was roused from his thoughts when his cellphone suddenly rang. Maybe there was still a happy ending tonight.

With a smile on his lips, he went to the phone "DiNozzo."

"Hey, Agent DiNozzo." This was clearly not Gibbs. The voice on the other end of the line was slightly higher than Jethro's and much harsher.

"Who's there?" asked Tony. He tried not to let on about his nervousness. His gut told him that whoever was on the phone, he meant nothing good.

"That's not important now." the man finally replied, "I want you to do something for me."

Tony laughed, "Yeah, sure. You know, you're not the only one."

But the man was not impressed by it and just went on "I want you back on the case of Midshipman Pawters. Find his killer!"

"Listen." began Tony and he suddenly sounded as tired as he felt "I had a long day today and will do nothing more, except to go to sleep. Besides, why would I do that? "

This time it was the man who laughed, "Why would you do that?" He asked, "Find Pawters murderer and I'll give you the antidote for the substance, you have just drunk with your beer! You don't find him and you will die" and with that he hung up.

It took a few seconds, until the words reached Tony's tired brain. Midshipman Pawters. Tony had never heared that name before. And antidote? What antidote? That meant......the man had.......he was.....

As Tony realised, what this man just said, he stopped his car in the middle of the street.

The guy had known that Tony had just drunk a beer. Had he seen him? How could he know it otherwise.

But if he had been watching him, then he had .... then it might be .....

Oh my god, someone had poisoned him.

TBC

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This was the first chapter. It'll get more soon, I hope you liked it; D  
See ya (I hope^^)

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Come on. The chapter has now been viewed as often I would really like to know what you think! Please!? OK, that sounds pathetic, but I would really like to know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hey guys, many, many thanks for the reviews. __I am glad that you liked the story and I hope it stays that way__^ ^ I wish you all a lot of fun with the new chapter!_

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For several minutes, Tony just sat in the car. He didn't even notice what was happening around him. He did not hear the cars driving by honking at him, or how the drivers shouted and cursed at him.

Tony was startled when his cellphone suddenly rang. The ringing reverberated against the walls of the car and rang in his ears.

With trembling hands, he flipped his cell phone open and held it to his ear. "DiNizzo." he wanted to say. He always answered the telephone with his name. But he couldn't speak. Not a word escaped his throat.

"Tony?" Hey, are you there? " It was Gibbs. Tony could not recall ever having been so glad to hear his voice.

"Yes." he finally whispered. He did not know what to say. How could he explain to Gibbs that someone had probably poisoned him, if he himself couldn't believe it? Jethro would probably kill him personally when he learned that Tony had gone in a bar in the middle of the week. They had to work tomorrow. And what did Agent DiNozzo? He walked into a bar to drink.

"Tony, hey, calm down!" Tony suddenly heard his boss say

And only then did he notice that he was hyperventilating. But how could he calm down? He couldn't breathe. All the air seemed to have gone out of the car.

He had to get out. He needed fresh air again to fill his lungs with oxygen.

As fast as he could, Tony opened the driver's door. He could hear Jethro on the other end of the line talking to him, but he couldn't understand the words.

He tripped on the sidewalk and leaned against a streetlight to keep his balance.

"Tony, you have to breathe more slowly. In......and out ........ in. ..... and out. That's good."

It took a minute befor his breathing was normal again, "Jethro." he said finally, and even if he couldn't say more, Gibbs seemed to understand what he wanted to say.

"I'm on my way, I'm already sitting in the car. Abby has traced your phone and I'll be with you in a minute."

That was good. Jethro would soon be here with him and then they could bring everything back under control. Just a few minutes and it would be okay again.

And five minutes later, Gibbs finally arrived. He had talked the whole time to Tony. Jethro had told him that they should forget their differences, that it was his fault and he wasn't angry at him. It had helped to distract Tony and reassuring him.

When Gibbs saw him now on the sidewalk, leaning against the streetlight, his car standing in the middle of the road, his heart almost stopped beating. He couldn't see any obvious injuries, but Gibbs had never seen Tony been so.....shocked? vulnerable?.

As fast as he could, he parked his car on the road, got out and ran to his young friend, "Tony?" he said as he stood before him.

DiNozzo had calmed down somewhat, but the shock was still clearly writen on his face. And that could mean anything good, because Tony was the best undercover agent Gibbs knew. Something really bad must had happened when Anthony DiNozzo showed his true feelings, "What happened?"

Tony felt Gibbs looked at him from top to bottom. He was looking for injuries. Normally, Tony would have been uncomfortable, but not now.

And without thinking about it, he suddenly threw his arms around Gibbs. He had to be near him, and pressed Jethro as close to his own body as he could.

Gibbs said nothing for a few minutes. He knew that when Tony was acting this way, he needed to be close to him "What happened?" he asked again as he stroked a hand reassuringly on Tony's back.

The younger agent broke the hug and looked at Gibbs for a few seconds. He saw concern in his eyes. Anxiety, confusion, but most of all he saw love. Tony took a deep breath, "I've just got a phone call." he finally began, "I have no idea who the guy was, but he wanted me to do something for him." once again he took a deep breath, "He wanted me to reopen a cold case. A murder. Midshipman Pawters."

"Okay." Gibbs said, "That's okay." But Tony just shook his head. Jethro had no idea where DiNozzo was getting at. And Tony had problems expressing it clearly.

"No, dammit, nothing is okay!" the younger man said in despair, "Gibbs, he knew that I was in the bar. He knew that I was drinking a beer." again he took a deep breath, but this time to calm a bit. He saw Gibbs deep into his blue eyes before he continued, "He said that the beer was poisoned, and we get the antidote only if we solve the case."

For a few seconds Gibbs said nothing. His thoughts swirled in his head and he had problems to arrange them.

Tony has been poisoned? How could this happen? Who would do something like this? _And what the hell was Tony doing in a bar?_

Jethro counted silently to ten. He had to concentrate now. All of these questions could be answered later, at the moment just one of them was important. Was Tony really poisoned?

"Okay, listen, you get in my car and stay put. I park your car and then we drive back to headquarters. Ducky should examine you."

But once again DiNozzo shook his head. Gibbs was sure that Tony was going to say again that he was fine and there was no need to go to Ducky. But he was surprised "Not a chance, that I leave my car in this neighborhood!"

Gibbs had to suppress a smile. Tony and his car "Then we'll just go with your car. But in your state, you don't drive yourself."

Tony just nodded and a minute later the two were on their way back to the headquarters of NCIS.

Twenty minutes later, Tony was sitting in the autopsy on one of the steel tables. Ducky had already taken his blood. Jimmy Palmer, who Assisstent the pathologist, had brought a little of the blood to Abby's lab.

Ducky sat at his desk and examined a small sample of Tony's blood under the microscope.

DiNozzo had now recovered from his shock and had told Gibbs what the unknown man had said to him on the phone. Jethro just called Ziva to tell her that McGee should trace the last call on Tony's cell phone and she should get the file Pawters from the archive.

Meanwhile, Tony was more nervous by the minute. What if the man had really poisoned him? He still felt good, but that meant nothing. He knew that that could change very quickly. Perhaps he was lucky and that was all just a bad joke. Or a nightmare. But Tony knew his luck and that meant nothing good.

"Hey, you okay?" Tony was startled. He hadn't noticed that Gibbs had finished his phone call and sat down beside him.

"Yeah I'm fine." he finally replied with one of his broad smiles.

Gibbs knew that he lied, that it was just another of his masks, which he put on to hide his true feelings. But he left it at that for now. Urging Tony to anything would be to no avail. That could only mean that he would shut himself even more from the others and even before him. Moreover, they still didn't know what was really going on.

But they would soon know, because Ducky stood up from his chair and came toward them.

"What have you got, Duck?" Gibbs asked immediately. The silver-haired agent could feel Tony's increasing nervousness and took his hand into his own. Ducky and Abby were the only ones who knew of their relationship. At least they don't had to hide from them. At this moment both Gibbs, and Tony were more than grateful for this.

"Anthony, my dear boy, I've found a slight abnormality in your blood." said the pathologist. Before either of them could react or ask questions, he went on quickly, "But that's not necessarily a cause for concern." He said, "It could be that you have a minor infection, which can be easily treated. My fear is that we must wait for Abby's results. "

This was not a reassuring answer. Something was wrong with him, and the likelihood that he was actually poisoned rose steadily.

As if Gibbs could read his thoughts, he lightly squeezed Tony's hand. The young agent smiled at him gratefully, before his attention was drawn to the door of the pathology. The door had opened only a crack, when Abby stormed in "Gibbs, Tony, I'm so sorry!" she said as she ran to them and wrapped her arms around the two men.

"Abigail, my girl, let the two a little air to breathe." Ducky walked on to help.

Abby broke the embrace and the anxious and sad expression in her eyes confirmed Tony's fear that she had no good news, "Tell me Abs" He had had enough of not knowing what was going on. He finally needed certainty.

Abby took a deep breath before she replied, "I found Chloropyrifos in Tony's blood. This is actually an insecticide, but it has been biologically altered."

"Does that mean that we are dealing again with a mutated virus?" asked Gibbs. He could only hope that he had misheard. The incident with the plague, he could still remember all too well.

"Not quite." Abby said, "This time we are dealing with a nerve poison."

Tony couldn't believe it. They had really poisoned him. With a nerve poison. No, with a biologically modified neurotoxin. This meant that there was no antidote and when anyone found one, then they had to test it first, and this whole process would take days, weeks, or even years.

"Gibbs, the man called me and told me everything." Abby said nervously, "I didn't have enough time to trace the call, but he told me that he has changed the poison and also what symptoms we should expect." the others looked at her waiting so she went on, "He said that the symptoms are similar to those in the normal effect of the insecticide. But it was different in each test. It goes from a running nose and headache, to abnormal heart rhythm, fainting, difficulty breathing and seizures. I made a list, but it's in my lab"

Tony could hardly think clearly. The only question that was still swirling in his head was "How long do I have, Abs?"

Abby just looked at him for a few seconds. Tony, one of her best friends in this world, had been poisoned. She had to help him somehow, "My babies don't achieve results yet, I can only say, what he told me and I don't know whether we can trust him. I must say that I hope he is lying, because then you're healthy, and nothing will happen and we could then go celebrate ......"

"Abby, please. How much time do I have?" Tony did not care by whom she had the information. He wanted to know how much time he had left. Tony knew it was bad for him, because Abby was currently anything but ....Abby. She walked nervously from one foot to another and fumbled with her lab coat. From the usually lively and cheerful Goth was nothing left.

"......The first symptoms would occur in the next few hours. It shouldn't be so bad at the beginning, but it will soon get worse ...."

"Abs!" Tony once again interrupted the chatter of the forensics specialist. He loved her, but he needed certainty.

Again, the young Goth just looked at him for a few seconds before she took a deep breath and said, "If we don't get the antidote, you have 48 hours to live."

TBC

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_That was chapter two. __I hope you liked it!? __Since there will be no new chapter this year, I wish you a happy new year. Don't c__elebrate too much: D  
See ya!_


	3. Chapter 3

Hey, I'm back ^ ^ First of all, a happy new year to you all!  
And then of course again, many, many thanks for the great review! It took me a few days until this chapter was finished, but here it is: D Have fun !!!!!; D

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_47 hours left._

For half an hour now, Tony was seated at his desk and studied the file of midshipman Pawters. Pacci had handled the case, but could never find the killer. There was not even a suspect. All had either an alibi or no motive. DiNozzo had found nothing so far that could help them.

Pawters was shot five years ago in his parents' house. A head shot. His father had found him and called the NCIS. Pacci and his team had searched the whole house but found nothing, except a pice of paper with a numerical code. There were no fingerprints, or other usable evidence, except this code. And they had never been able to decipher it. To date, no one knew what it meant.

Currently, Tony was alone in the bullpen. It was already 0300 in the morning and all agents had already gone home. All, except for team Gibbs.

McGee and Ziva were just out. Tim had found that the unknown man had called from a phone box near the bar, and Gibbs had sent them there immediately.  
Their best chance was that they found fingerprints so they could identify the guy. But Tony doubted that. He couldn't imagine that someone was stupid enough to poison him and then leave his fingerprints.

The man who had poisoned him. Tony laughed. That would be a great movie title.

The guy had given Abby a short list of the symptoms that he had probably had to expect. Tony hadn't read it yet. Abs had given the list to Jethro and he had tucked it in his top desk drawer, after he readed it.  
Gibbs was currently in the the Director's Office and brought her up to date. That would probably take a while.

Tony was not sure whether he wanted to see the list. It would certainly help if he knew what he had to expect. Still.  
He would never openly admit it, but he was afraid. Afraid of what he had to expect. Afraid that they wouldn't find the man. Afraid to die.

Tony was not accustomed to this feeling. Normally, when he was in the field, he had no time to think about it. He simply acted and gave no thought about whether he could die or not. But this was like when he had the plague.  
Although, not quite. This time, he could do something if Gibbs would let him. But Jethro apparently thought that it would be better if he locked Tony up in the office to keep him in sight. DiNozzo could understand him. If it were the other way, he probably wouldn't let Jethro out of sight. However, if he had to sit around here all the time and could do nothing, he would go crazy.

And the first thing he had to do was read the list.

So Tony got up, walked over to Gibbs' desk and pulled the paper from the drawer before he sat down. For several seconds he just looked at the piece of paper. Then at last he unfolded it and began to read.

**Effect of the poison chlorpyrifos in humans:**

_Runny nose, teary eyes, Sweating, weakness, agitation, Disorientation, Sneezing, bronchospasm, Breathing difficulty, fatigue, tremors, incoordination, twitching muscles, Dizziness, Headache, Nausea, Vomiting, abdominal cramps, tight chest, wheezing, fluid in lungs, Productive cough, shallow breathing, pinpoint pupils, Blurred vision, abnormal heart rhythm, Seizures, Unconsciousness_

For a moment it seemed as if the whole world stood still. Tony had no idea whether it was worse than he had expected, or not. Actually, he had no idea what he had expected at all.  
He didn't know how it was to be poisoned. He had been through a lot, he was already the prime suspect in a murder, he was shot, kidnapped, had the plague. But this was new.

Tony was startled when he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. When he turned, he looked directly into Gibbs' steely blue eyes, "Hey," he said with a slight smile on his lips.

"Hey," said Gibbs, and his eyes a locked on the piece of paper in Tony's hands. "Why didn't you wait for me before you read it? You don't have to do this alone."

"I couldn't wait any longer." Tony said, rubbing a hand across his tired eyes. His head pounded a little, but Tony wasn't sure whether it was because of his tiredness, or if it was a first symptom of the poisoning.

"We find this guy."

Still with a smile on his lips, Tony turned around again to Gibbs and looked him straight in the eyes "I know." he said. And he meant it. Gibbs would find this man and bring him down. The only question was whether he would make it in time.

The pounding in DiNozzos head was getting worse by the minute, but the worst was the nausea that came over him all at once. From one second to the other, Tony was so bad that he felt the need to vomit.  
As fast as he could the young Agent jumped up and ran to the men's room. He pushed the door open and ran into the first cabin. Tony managed to lift up the toilet seat before he threw up.

Gibbs had followed his lover. He could observe at his desk, as Tony's face went to a light green, before he was on his feet. And now he knelt before the toilet and spat out everything he had eaten the previous day.  
Gibbs immediately went to him. As he sat next to Tony, he heard his knee cracking.  
With one hand Jethro stroked small circles on Tony's back. He had the other put on DiNozzos back, so he doesn't fell forward.

It took about a minute, until nothing was left in Tony's stomach and after that came only dry heaving. The young agent coughed a few times and Gibbs winced at the painful sound. It hurt him to see his young lover in pain. And it hurt even more, knowing that this was only the beginning.

And then it was finally over. Totally exhausted and out of breath, Tony dropped a bit forward, before Jehtro catched him. Gibbs sat on the cold floor and leaned against the wall of the cabin, as he pulled Tony with him. He knew that someone could come in there and see them, but he didn't care. Tony was the only thing that mattered at that moment.

The young half Italian had his head placed on Gibbs' chest, and tried to copy his breathing. His lungs burned and his throat was dry as dust.  
Tony knew that he should drink some water, but he simply couldn't pull himself from his position. He felt weak and sit here while Jethro had wrapped his arms around him, simply felt too good. The body heat of his lover had a calming effect.

What was not particularly reassuring was the fact that he had just throwed up his entire stomach contents. The first symptom of the poisoning. And it was only the beginning. His headache was also getting worse, but all this were still the more harmless symptoms. When DiNozzo thought of what he had to expect in the next 47 hours, he could throw-up again.

He had no idea what would happen next, but he knew that it would be bad. But at least he was not alone. And they would find this guy.

Tony only hoped that they would make it in time.

TBC

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Thanks for reading!!!  
I hope you liked it!? I come back soon with a new chapter: D * cookies and coffee for all * (small bribe^^)


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Sorry it took so long. ****But I had no internet for a long time. ****But now I'm back and I brought you a new chapter  
****But first: Many, many thanks for the great review. ****I was really happy about that!!!!**

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After a few minutes the two got up from the floor. Tony first rinsed his mouth and drank some water before he splashed some in his face.  
Now the two agents were again on their way to their desks. None of them said a word and they didn't have to. They knew what the other thought. And this time it was not hard to.

But neither Gibbs nor Tony wanted to think about it, at the moment. They simply wanted to go to work and find this guy.

"Maybe we should start to process the murder" said Gibbs, after the two had arrived at Tony's desk.

Anthony sat down with a sigh in his chair before he looked at Gibbs with a smile "I thought we do not negotiate with terrorists?"

Jethro laughed. Only when Tony stopped making jokes or playing the smart ass, he has to be concerned. "And I think we might make an exception" he replied, before he became serious again. "McGee and Ziva look for clues in the phone booth and in the bar, so for the both of us remeins the Pawters case." Gibbs waited a few seconds and when Tony nodded approvingly, he asked: "What have you got?"

"Not much," said DiNozzo as he breathes deeply and stood up again. He took the remote control of the large plasma TV and had a picture of Pawters appear on the screen.  
"Midshipman Jonathan Pawters is, was murdered, five years ago, at the age of nineteen. He was born here and grew up in DC. Has an older brother, James Pawters, now 28 years old.  
His mother died eight years ago in a car accident. "

Tony paused for a moment and when Gibbs looked over at him, he realized that he swayed a little. Jethro grabbed his arm "Come here, sit down" he said as he helped Tony into his chair.

"Sorry, Boss," DiNozzo said, although he didn't know what exactly he was apologizing for.

"It's okay. Nothing for you to apologize." Jethro was worried and watched his lover for a few seconds "Should I call Ducky?"

Tony shook his head "No, I'm fine."

Gibbs was not convinced, but left it here for now. Still, he insisted that Tony was sitting in his chair. He took the file from his senior field agents desk and went over to his own.

While he studied the file, he kept looking over at Tony.  
DiNozzo had his head on the desk and his eyes closed. But Jethro could tell by his breathing that he was not asleep.

He went back to the file. Due to the lack of evidence, it was not very thick. It took less than ten minutes, until he discovered something "Hey, Tony."

Tony raised his head slowly and looked over at Gibbs. Jethro saw, that he had dark circles under his eyes. He looked terribly tired. And there were fine lines of pain around his mouth and eyes.  
But Gibbs did'nt ask him about it. He knew the answer anyway.

Jethro had learned the hard way, what Tony's words really meant, when it came to his health. When he complained and protested that he was seriously injured, then he had a paper cut.  
When he said that he was fine, then there was a reason for concern. Because it meant that the exact opposite was the case.  
When he looked deep into Gibbs blue eyes and said that he wasn't feeling good, then it was time to get scared.

Jethro shook the thought off his mind. They were still at 'I'm fine' and he would make sure, that they wouldn't come to 'I don't feel good'  
"In this file is nothing about Pawters father" he said finally.

"Yeah, I also noticed"Tony said softly "Let's see, if I can find something. "And with that he began to tipe on his keyboard.

Gibbs wondered for a few seconds whether he should give the job to someone else, or make it himself. He decided against it. Although Tony looked as if he would fall asleep at any moment, Jethro knew that he needed to do something. If he hadn't a job, then he would began to think about the whole thing. It was better when he had something that he could concentrate on.

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_45 hours left_

Tony was still trying to figure out something about the father of Midshipman Pawters.  
But so far he had found nothing.

First, it was because Pawters was a fairly common name. Without a first name he couldn't do much. He probably had to wait for McGee to return so he could do his computer magic.

DiNozzo would have asked Abby, but she had enough work to do.

The second reason for the lack of information was the fact that Tony had problems to concentrate. His headache was getting worse, he was still sick and now he also had stomach pains. However, the annoying thing was that his nose was running constantly. And the worried looks, Jethro shot him every few minutes, only made his lack of concentration worse.

Tony looked up from his work as the familiar 'ping' announced the arrival of the elevator. And stormed out came an angry-looking Donald Mallard.  
This was something they couldn't see very often. The pathologist was one of the most polite, tolerant and patient men, whom Tony had ever met.

But slowly, he got a bad feeling, because Ducky directly approached his desk "Anthony, I expected you half an hour ago in autopsy," he said lightly applied.

DiNozzo looked at him confused "What?"

"I had asked you to come to me every hour, so I'm up to date about your condition."

"DiNozzo," Gibbs growled at his senior field agent. A clear sign that he was furious that he knew nothing about it.

Tony, however, had the problem that he himself knew nothing about it "Excuse me Ducky. I cann't even remember you've said something like that. "

"But I did. Immediately after Abigail showed me the list of the expected symptoms, I said to Timothy that he should ask you ...."

"Wait Duck, you told McGee?" Gibbs interrupted suddenly.

This time it was the pathologist who looked confused "Yes," he confirmed, "I told him that it was necessary.  
Some of the symptoms are a risk to Anthony's already weakened lungs. I would like to keep an eye on that."

Gibbs was now up and came over to them.  
Tony could see that he was furious. His hands were clenched into fists and he had this -I shoot him- look on his face.

But at the moment DiNozzo couldn't bring himself to care and protect McGee, as usual.  
It really was not Tim's fault. They were all completely exhausted and under high stress.  
He'd forgot about it and if he was lucky, then Gibbs had calmed down by the time he returned.

But at the moment Tony was just glad that it wasn't his fault. He had already had the fear that he had forgotten about something importent as that.  
He knew that such a symptom wasn't on the list, but who knew.

He was just glad that his mind still worked.

"Anthony, I must apologize. Apparently ...."

The man addressed interrupted Ducky with a gesture of his hand "It's okay, Ducky." He could understand him. Tony always avoided to consult a doctor. In most situations until he collapsed. It was only natural that Ducky thought that this time was no exception.

The pathologist just nodded and smiled slightly "I think we should move this into autopsy."

DiNozzo had a comment on his tongue, but gulped it down again. Even he found the situation unfitting. Instead, he stood up slowly.

He had to hold on to the edge of his desk, when he could feel himself swaying dengerously. Tony closed his eyes, in hope of getting the dizziness under control. But it didn't work.

Tony heard someone say his name and grabbing his arm before his legs gave out under his weight.

Then everything went black.

TBC

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**AN: I know....it's short. ****But the next chapter is almost finished. ****I will post it in the next few days. ****Promise!!!!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm so, so sorry!!!!! I know I said: The new chap would come in a few days....but than I then I got sick.....but now I'm back;-)**  
**But first of all. Thank you guys so much for the wonderful reviews!!!!! I hope you like this chap just as much!? Have fun;-) **

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Gibbs watched as Tony got up, holding on his desk and a second later suddenly collapsed.  
With one step he was at his lovers side and grabbed him. He was just able to prevent that Tony hit the ground.

Ducky was immediately at their side and felt for DiNozzos pulse. "A little too fast, but stable," he said finally, and Gibbs breathed a sigh of relief. "Jethro, I think we have no other choice."

The team leader looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He had an idea what the ME was talking about.  
"We need to bring him to the hospital. They can take better care of him and treat the symptoms better than I can."

Gibbs looked at Tony one more time.  
He knew that Ducky was right. But he also knew how much Tony hated hospitals. The only question was whether he had any choice.  
If Tony would stay here in the office and especially in its vicinity, he had to suffer. Pain, nausea. Gibbs didn't even want to think about what was still on the list.  
Would he bring DiNozzo to the hospital, then they could help him. Painkillers, something for nausea.

There was only one reason why Tony was even still here. He, Gibbs wanted to be by his side.  
Jethro would have liked given himself a headslap. How could anyone be so selfish? "You're right, Ducky" he said, finally.

The ME nodded. "I'll call an ambulance." He got up and walked over to Zivas desk.

Meanwhile, Gibbs tried to wake Tony up. He said his name a few times, but when that didn't work, he lightly slapped DiNozzos cheek.

́Tony merely muttered something that Jethro didn't understand before he finally opened his eyes slowly.  
Gibbs smiled as he looked into the green eyes of his lover. But his voice was gruff as always, when they were at work. "Nice of you to join us, DiNozzo."

Tony turned his head slightly and looked around, confused.  
"What happened?"  
"You passed out."  
Tony looked directly into Gibbs blue eyes. "DiNozzo's do not pass out."

Jethro laughed.  
He remembered when the last time was he had heard these words from Tony. It was the first day when DiNozzo had returned to work, after the infection with the plague. "If you say so" he said, patting Tony's cheek just before he slid his hand on DiNozzos shoulder.

For a few swconds they just looked at each other, until Ducky suddenly appeared next to them.  
"Ah, Anthony my dear boy, how nice that you are awake" he said, taking DiNozzos wrist to feel for his pulse. Finally, he nodded approvingly. "Still not normal, but ok. And the ambulance is on its way. "

Tony's eyes went big. "Ambulances? I need no damn ambulance" he said, with a mixture of fear and anger in his voice. He tried to stand up but Gibbs pushed him gently back on the floor. "I'm fine!"

"Yeah?", asked Jethro, his patience slowly coming to an end. "As far as I know you have been poisoned. You're in pain, and were just unconscious for two minutes."

"And now I am awake again, so let me get up at last. If you haven't noticed yet, the floor is not very comfortable."

This time, Gibbs helped him get up and sit down again on his chair. At one point, Tony was right. He was alert and oriented, so there was no reason to leave him lying on the hard floor. But that doesn't mean that he would give in when it came to the ambulance. "You're going to the hospital."

Tony looked at his boss, angry. He didn't want to go to the hospital. He hated hospitals and Gibbs knew it. God, everyone knew it. "I don't go to the hospital!"

Gibbs sighed. "Tony, Ducky cann't help you here. You have to go. "

"No."

Tony winced as Jethro suddenly hit his fist on the desk.  
"Damn, why the hell do you always have to be so stubborn? No one here can do something for you. In the hospital, they can make it easier for you "

"Make ist easier? What? Dying? No thanks!"

"Hey!" Gibbs took a few deep breaths and tried to calm himself. He couldn't believe what Tony just said and the urge to hit the younger man was great. But he wouldn't do that now.  
Instead, he took Tony's hands and looked him straight in the eye. "I don't want to hear something like that ever again," he began softly. "I don't like it either. I don't want you to go to the hospital. I want you to stay here.  
But Tony, you're in pain, you've lost consciousness just a few minutes ago. And it gets worse. They can help you at the hospital."

For seconds they just looked at each other. Gibbs could see that Tony was struggling with himself.

He didn't know what it was in the end. Whether it was the realization that Jethro was probably right, or the pleading look. But Tony finally nodded. "Okay, I'm going. But I walk to the ambulance!"

That brought a relieved smile on Gibbs' lips. He knew that it was hard for Tony to accept help. And he hoped fervently that he wouldn't regret having persuaded his lover to do so.

* * *

Half an hour later they were at Bethesda Navy Hospital. Tony was brought directly into isolation. The only thing that was missing, were the blue lights.

Gibbs had been relegated to the waiting room, as long as everything was prepared for DiNozzos treatment.  
Jethro, however, has never been a very patient man. But he didn't want to go. He had to see Tony again, before he could go back into the office.

Ziba and McGee knew that they were at the hospital. They had completed they work and Officer David was now on her way back to the office, to get the evidence, they found, to Abby.  
Meanwhile, Tim wanted to come to the hospital to get Gibbs up-to-date.

Jethro now only needed something to distract himself. He had much work to do, but he just couldn't go without first talking to Tony again.  
So he decided to use the computer in the nurses room.

They still new nothing about Pawters father and Gibbs' gut told him that something was wrong with this man. The probability that he had something to do with the poisoning, was not exactly small. The man had lost his wife and youngest son within a few years.

Gibbs could still very well remember how it was when Shannon and Kelly were killed. He had had no rest until he hadn't seen himself that this bastard had made his last breath.  
It wasn't such that it got better or easier after his revenge.  
No, he was still hurting. And it had lasted a long time until he finally managed to resume a reasonably normal life.  
And yet he had never regretted, having killed this man. Because for a brief moment he was again able to breathe freely. For a moment he was able to smile again.

Moreover, this man didn't deserve to live. He had taken away everything that meant something to him.

And now someone wanted to take away everything, again. He couldn't allow that.  
At that time he had not been there to protect his wife and daughter. But today he was there. And he would do everything possible to save Tony.

He could not allow that Tony died. He couldn't go through this again. He needed Tony.  
But he couldn't do anything by sitting in the waiting room. So he made his way to the nurses' station.

There he found a young nurse who, as young as she looked, was probably still in schoolin.  
Jethro informed her that he would use the computer to be able to work and told her that she must leave the room. At first she protested and told Gibbs to leave. Two minutes later, she ran out of the room, crying.

"Gibbs, what have you done to that poor girl?"

"Nothing, Margret. I just told her that I need to work." Jethro smiled, while the head nurse glared at him.

He knew that she wasn't as mad at him, as she looked. The two had met, when Tony was infected with pneumonic plague. And Gibbs liked her. She was a nice, humorous, elderly lady who was not afraid to tell him what she thought.

"Bring the poor young women to cry with only a glance. Something only you can do" she said finally, and this time she smiled.

Gibbs laughed "I'm pretty sure you can do it just as well as I."

"It's possible," she hesitated for a moment, then: "I've heard that with Tony. I am sure he will be ok."

Jethro nodded. He had never been a man of many words and even now he had no idea what to say.

"I....have to back to work. But Agent McGee is waiting for you"

"Can you send him in....please."

"Of course," said Margaret, smiling at him again, "It will be all right." And wit that she turned around and left the room.

Gibbs had a minute to organize his thoughts. Margret sounded so sure when she said that everything would be okay. Jethro was also sure, that they would find the bastard, that poisoned Tony. But would they make it in time?

Even before Jethro could continue to think about it, Tim came bursting into the room. "Gibbs," he said curtly, nodding to the team leader.

"McGee. What did you find? "

"There was not much in the phone booth" Tim started immediately, "Of course a lot of fingerprints. Many of them already so overlaid that they can no longer be used.  
The few we could take, Ziva brought to Abby.  
We have taken a swab from the listener. Perhaps Abby finds usable DNA."

Gibbs nodded. It was clear from the begining that they wouldn't find much in the phone booth. He hoped that under the bit of what they had, was something useful.

"What about the bar?"

"We had a little more luck," McGee said and even smiled this time.

Jethro could feel his heart suddenly beat faster. Tim had good news. They had something that they could use to find this bastard.

"The owner of the bar, Joseph Welsh. He has told us that he had tonight, a new employee in the kitchen. It was a trial work and this man seemed to be very interested in Tony. He had asked Joe a few questions and he had had the chance to poison Tony's beer. He's on his way to HQ for an phantom image."

"Good McGee. Go back to headquarters and help Abby. Ziva is to find out anything about Pawters father. I want to know who this man is!"

"Okay, boss."

Tim turned around and was about to leave the room, when he again turned round. He hesitated briefly, but the concern for his friend and colleague, triumphed in the end to his nervousness. "Boss, how's Tony?"

Gibbs looked a few seconds at the youngest team member. He could clearly see the worry in Tim's eyes.

Jethro knew that Tony and McGee were good friends. DiNozzo had mentioned a few times, that Tim was like a little brother to him. He could always talk to him, he could have fun with him and above all he could annoy him.

Tony had expressed once, that he would like to tell McGee about their relationship. Jethro had not really thought about it and then had used any excuses. And Tony had never mentioned again.  
If Gibbs was honest, he simply was afraid. He loved Tony and had no problems to show him his feelings. But he had a problem with admitting it in public.  
While at work they couldn't show it anyway. One of them - certenly Tony - would be transferred to another team.....when they were lucky somewhere in Alaska.  
But privately, it was no different. Even if the two went shopping, Gibbs always held distance between them.

The problem was that Jethro had seen it before during his time with the Marines. And during his career at NCIS he had already dealt with some cases where men were beaten or even murdered just because they were on other men.

He didn't care what people thought of him. He just wanted to protect Tony. But now he saw that his decision to keep it secret even from Tim, was not the right one. McGee would have no problem with their relationship.  
Tim was able to keep secrets to himself, and he was a nice guy. But most of all was a good friend of Tony.

"Boss?"

Gibbs had not even noticed that he was so engrossed in his thoughts. He still owed McGee an answer. "He is not very good, Tim," he said, and smiled sadly.  
McGee had the right to hear the truth. It was pointless lying to him.

"We'll get this guy, boss. And Tony comes back on his feet," said Tim and Gibbs could see the honesty of this statement in his eyes.

His team would not give up.

Jethro nodded and smiled again slightly, befor McGee turned around and left the room.  
Gibbs hadn't even a minute to be able to breathe in peace, as the head nurse came back into the room. "Gibbs, we're ready now. And Tony wants to see you. "

Jethro nodded and folloewed her down the floor.

Tony was this time, just as when he had the plague, again in isolation. He even had the same bed. The only thing missing were the blue lights.  
He knew that DiNozzo was anything but pleased, but at the moment this was the last thing on his mind.

Tony lay on his side, so that Jethro could only see his back. But his posture was tense and he had his legs pulled close to his body.  
As fast as he could, he was at his side. "Hey, Tony," he said softly, stroking a hand through his lovers hair.

Anthony looked at him with half-closed eyes. "Hey yourself." It was no more than a whisper and Gibbs could hear that he was in pain. And if Anthony DiNozzo did not try to hide that fact, then it was really bad. "Can't you give him something?" Gibbs turned to Ducky, who had been in the same room the whole time.

The ME had positioned himself on the other side of Tony and watched the two. "I'm sorry, Jethro. But we can not do anything for him. "

"Damn Duck, he's in pain!"

Tony took Gibbs hand to get his attention again. "It's okay, Jet. Just a little stomach cramps. It's not that bad."

Gibbs was about to open his mouth to retort something, when Tony talked again. "It's not Ducky's fault. They don't know what the poison contains and so they can't give me any medication. It could get worse if they give me drugs."

Jethro took a deep breath. The day was just getting worse.  
He bent down to Tony and pressed a kiss on his forehead. "I'll be back soon. We find this guy and then everything will be all right, okay. We'll get through this. "

Tony smiled, "I know. I think 43 hours is not much time, but ....." The smile suddenly vanished from his lips and he looked seriously into Gibbs eyes. "Jet, it's not your fault if you don't get him!"  
He wanted to say more. But Jethro brought him with his lips to silence. They kissed for a few seconds before Jethro ended it. "This is something I will never hear again.  
I gotta go now. Ducky will stay with you and I'll be back and keep you on the loop."

Tony just nodded in reply. Gibbs kissed him once more, before he walked out of the room.

As he crossed the room, he threw Ducky a look that told him that he should take good care of Tony and tell him if he knew anything new. The ME nodded.

Tony was right. They had not much time.

43 hours.

But it had to be enough. And it would be enough.

Gibbs would find the guy who poisoned Tony and would beat the antidote out of this bastard.

He looked forward to it.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I'm sorry it took so long, but it's rather stressful at the moment. But the next chepter is on;D  
But at first thank you all so much for the great reviews!! And no mater how long it takes for me to update, I can promise you that I will complete this story!!!! It can take a few weeks to update, but I will complete it!! Big promise!;D  
****But now....have fun!;D**

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He had known that it was a bad idea to go back to HQ. Of course he hadn't had much choice. But he had now lost a further half hour only to bring the director up to date. Half an hour he could have used finding the bastard, who had poisoned Tony.

Actually, he had even lost forty minutes. For ten minutes, he had tried to convince Jenny that he had more importent things to do at the moment, than explain to her how far they were with the case.

At least Abby, McGee and Ziva were not stopped from working. And Gibbs hoped fervently that they found something. They had just over 42 hours. Jethro didn't want to think about it, because it showed how little progress they had made an how little time they had left. And what happened when the time was up.....no he definitely didn't want to think about _that._

However, he found it a little difficult to distract himself from these facts, as he sat in Jenny's office. She had stolen precious time. And worse was, that she didn't seemed to care. She had stubbornly insisted, that he had to bring her up to date about the situation. Probably she was right and he couldn't do anything. But everything would have been better than sitting with Jenny in her office. Especially since it wouldn't have seemed nearly as pointless.

Now he was on his way to Abby's lab. Ziva should have been sitting at her desk, but Gibbs was sure that she had joined the others down in the lab. Normally he would be mad about it, but today he didn't care. Maybe because today was everything but normal.

Jethro took the stairs down. Normally he would take the elevator. But that would only mean, that he had time to think about everything that happened today and could happen in the next 42 hours. And that definitely wasn't an option.

Now he's focused on simply taking one step after another and prayed that the others had found out something. And faster than he liked, he arrived at the lab. Actually he loved to come down here, to talk to Abby. But at the moment he was almost afraid. He wasn't sure if he wanted to hear what the others had to say. But he had no other choice.

He took a depp breath. He had to focus on the case and keep his personal feelings in check.

Ziva had actually gone to the lab. She sat at Abby's desk and talked on the phone with someone. Probably with one of her contacts.

McGee stood in front of the large screen while Abby typed something in her computer.

"Tell me that you have something for me," Gibbs said suddenly, ignoring the fact that McGee and Abby flinched.

"We just wanted to call you, Boss," said Tim excitedly and walked to stand beside Abby "We checked the fingerprints from the phone booth. Of course, not all, there far too many ... we have a match."

Jethro felt his heart pounding faster. They had their first clue and what could be better as the identity of a suspect. And yet he couldn't enjoy it. Because, first the guy still wasn't at HQ. Secondly, they didin't know whether he had really done it. After all, it was a public phone booth. And thirdly, the whole thing was somehow too easy. In the years that Gibbs worked for NCIS, he had learned one thing, a case was never easy. "Don't let me gues," Jehtro threatened finally. He hated it when they let him wait and espesially at the moment. There wasn't much time left.

Tim looked nervous and Jethro was sure that he was going to stutter again. But he would have lost that bet, because it was Abby who finally answered. "Pawters, Gibbs," she said without her usually ever-present enthusiasm "Steven Pawters, the father of Midshipman Jonathan Pawters." Too simple. Gibbs had a feeling that this wasn't the end. His gut had told him from the beginning that the father had something to do with this whole mess. But something was missing. He just didn't knew what.

Jethro was about to say something when the door to Abby's lab opened and Ziva stormed in. "Gibbs, Jonathan Pawters father's name is ...."

"Steven Pawters," Gibbs finished the sentence for her "Good work," he added to all. Because that's what it was. They had done a good job "Anything else?"

Ziva nodded "Pawters is a male nurse in the university clinic. That means it is possible for him to take this stuff, like the poison Tony was given."

He had a motive and the opportunity to do it. Nevertheless, Jethro was sure that wasn't all. "We bring him in," he said finally, "Address?"

"Here," said Ziva and gave Gibbs a piece of paper that she already held in her hand the whole time.

This time it was Gibbs who nodded before he turned and left the lab. He knew Ziva and Tim would follow him. Perhaps they would be lucky this time and it would be over soon. There was nothing that Gibbs wanted more. This idea, that Tony would die if they were wrong, was almost unbearable. But again, he pushed him into the back of his brain. If he let himself be distracted now, then there was the possibility that Pawters could escape. And he couldn't allow that.

Jethro was still sure that there was more behind this whole story. There were some things that didn't get along together.

Gibbs was fetched from his thoughts when his phone rang suddenly, while he got into the elevator. 'Ducky' appeared on the display and Jethro hold his breath for a second. He had told the ME that he should update him about Tony's condition every now an then. But even if he only wanted to give Gibbs an update, was the likelihood that something bad had happened, great.

He took another deep breath "Gibbs," he said.

"Jethro, you should come here immediately," Ducky replied and Gibbs knew immediately that something has happened. The various scenes played for a few seconds in his head. One worse than the other. "What happend?" he asked finally, and was suprised that his voice showed nothing of his feelings.

The pathologist was silent for a moment, seemingly unsure what to say. He apparently decided to say it outright. "Anthony is gone. We searched the hospital, but it looks as if he had disappeared."

**TBC**

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**A/N: For the next few weeks I will have no Internet. I don't know how long it will be, but I will come back as soon as I can!!!! *hugs you all***


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